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Title:: Is“ Insight” Necessary fo“r Creativity” ?：Implications of Zhu Daosheng’sBuddhism Theory for Modern Psychological Studieson Creative Insight Problem Solving

Abstract:: Although the mental process of insight or sudden enlightenment has been widely recognized anddiscussed either in the field of problem solving and creative thinking in modern cognitive psychology，or inthe tradition of Buddhism practice especially the one in Chan sect，modern cognitive theories on insight stilldoes not answer the question of whether or not the process of insight is necessary or indispensable for creativeproblem solving. To this fundamental question，an ancient Chinese Buddhist scholar，Zhu Daosheng（ 355—434），proposed that insight is the only possible way to achieve the goal state（ such as becoming Buddha）because the goal state is holistic and cannot be possibly decomposed into components and incrementallyachieved step by step. This principle provides a new perspective for us to understand the nature of insight.